What’s my Wassily Chair Worth?
There are many variables to consider. A good starting point is to look at what a new Wassily chair from Knoll costs. Currently the retail price depends on the version of the frame: The new Knoll Wassily stainless steel version price tag is $3,561. Their gold plated entry retails for $5,356. This is before shipping.
Then, consider the following:
Authentic:
Vintage: Late 1950s to current day. Is it a Knoll or Stendig labeled chair? As these were both made in the same factory, Gavina of Italy, they are considered equally authentic. In both cases there was a paper logo sticker put on the underside of the seat affixed with adhesive. On rare occasions you may find the sticker on the underside of an arm. Because it’s affixed with glue it may have fallen off. So, if it’s missing, that does not mean it isn’t authentic. Often, you may see a small rectangular impression on the leather that is the shape of the original logo. If the logo is missing, there are other clues to look for. You’ll find a video link that talks about these clues of authenticity under the Resources heading. The more recent versions (post 2000) have the Knoll logo embossed into the frame.
In general, the chairs have an inherent value based on the condition of the frame and the seating material. There are two types of seating available, leather or canvas. The vast majority are leather. Within the leather offerings, there are 3 variations: A full finished, protected leather, most are colored black, an unfinished, raw leather and a hair-on hide often referred to as a “pony hide.” The fully finished colored leather versions represent about 95% of all chairs in use today. The unfinished leather version then has about a 4% share and the hair-on hide about 1%.
On the open market, through mid-century modern furniture dealers, A Knoll or Stendig Wassily chair that shows reasonably well will range in price from $1,500 to $4,000 based on the condition of the steel, and its leather. These authentic Wassily chairs are in high demand and are becoming more valuable over time. The rate of increase seems to be tied to the cost of a new chair from Knoll or one of their authorized resellers like Design Within Reach. And a final point is the original steel frames had a highly refined weld on the steel tube ends whereas the latest versions do not. This means the original steel frames are limited to what’s in use today as they are no longer manufacturing them with that distinctive characteristic. There is little doubt the frames with that high quality weld with become more valuable over time.
Vintage: Post WW II, Late 1940s to late 1950s. These pre-date Knoll and Stendig logoed frames but also manufactured by Gavina and often referred to as the B3 Chair. These are far more difficult to find and can carry a price tag more than $30,000.
Vintage: Pre WW II, Late 1920s to the late 1930s. These B3 pieces are exceedingly rare and like any fine “museum grade” piece must be valued individually.
Non-Authentic:
The quality of the frames and the seating material of knockoffs vary greatly. You can find them online for as little as under $300. These have little inherent value.
Leather Condition: This can vary greatly. If the leather has broken down, rendering the chair unusable, it has little to no value if you can’t sit in it. Considering this reality, essentially the value is in the frame as the leather can be replaced. The frame is steel and will last a century or two. With the right type and quality of leather you can expect 30 – 40 years of use. However, it should be noted there are Wassily chairs that are over 60 years old and are still in service with their original leather. If the leather does need to be replaced, Advanced Leather Solutions can do that for you. You can replace all 7 worn out, broken or damaged leather pieces or one component at a time as they can color match a new Wassily leather strap to match the original. They start with raw leather and custom color it to match whatever is desired.
If leather does need to be replaced, beware of buying leather components that don’t follow the original design specification of true premium grade vegetable tanned leather. Some companies provide replacement strap components using inferior grade materials like bonded leather that lack the long-term durability of true vegetable tanned leather. To learn more about bonded leather, click here for the Resources heading and read the section under Frequently Asked Questions.
Advanced Leather Solutions will offer an evaluation of the authenticity of your piece if you send an array of photos of the target piece. To learn more, spend some time looking through the full Resources section of this website.
Finally, if you are looking to sell your chair, consider putting your chair onto the Wassily Chair Exchange Forum found here: https://www.wassilystrapreplacement.com/wassily-exchange As this is a pilot program just under way, there is no cost to posting your chair on this site.